Holiday Party Attire #FashionFriday

My husband’s office holiday party is this weekend and I have NO IDEA what I’m going to wear. So it seemed like a good topic for Fashion Friday!

Of course, these occasions vary widely in formality, and I suppose the style quotient differs across different parts of the country, but there are some basics that always work.

They say you can’t go wrong with a LBD, and I suppose that’s generally true, but my husband’s office parties have been fairly casual as of late, and I wouldn’t feel comfortable in a cocktail dress.

I do, however, have a collection of cute tops gathering dust in the back of my closet so I will likely pull one of them out and pair them with my dressy jeans or black ponte knit pants. A fabulous pair of shoes, a piece or two of statement jewelry, and a cute clutch and you’re good to go!!

Last year I wore this glittery top (Ann Taylor, circa 2007) with my favorite jeans and suede pumps to my husband’s party. It was at a VERY casual location last year!! I’m talking bowling alley casual. I KNOW.

I wore this outfit to a daytime holiday party last week. (Kudos to the ladies of Element Associates – Sarah Peppel, Debbie Bookstaber and Melissa Angert – for throwing a fun and festive Cyber Monday Luncheon!!)

I’m considering reworking this outfit for Saturday night. It is comfortable and has some bling, although at the end of the day, it is rather safe.

It’s times like these when I wish I had a pair of leather pants. I don’t, and I don’t want to spend the money to get them either, so I will probably make my black ponte knit pants work.

I tend to be a bit of a plain jane, but I’ve learned to make a primarily black outfit work by incorporating some bling or texture and ideally one fabulous accessory — either shoes or jewelry or handbag. In this case, I really needed a statement accessory. The shirt has the bling, and I did try to pick my most striking jewelry but I needed something more. I think the outfit would have popped with a truly great collection of stacked bracelets or perhaps a wow pair of earrings. Or maybe a great bag? The bag I carried I like a lot, but it was black too. I guess I have some shopping to do!!

Of course, pants aren’t always appropriate for holiday parties. Any of the above tops would be fab with this sequined skirt.

And this Sequin Mirror Skirt is stunning. (I’m assuming the model is 6’10” and it wouldn’t be a mini skirt on us ordinary humans.)

Wouldn’t this Chantilly Lace Charmeuse Blouse be perfect with that black sequin skirt (above)?? I like that it’s not bare, but it’s still festive. I often get cold at winter parties in sleeveless tops.

Of course, some of you lucky people do have more formal parties to attend this year. In fact, reader Mary wrote in just a few weeks ago:

I was wondering if you might share ideas for semi formal Christmas party dress and shoes and jewelry ideas. I would love to see many dress options. Thank you for helping this mama who is fashionably inspired by you.

Dress options. Okay! Here are some ideas.

Here is how I might put one of those dresses together with shoes, bag and accessories.

About Jo-Lynne Shane

Nielsen-Ranked Top 50 influential mom online, Jo-Lynne Shane is founder, editor, and primary writer of this personal lifestyle blog (formerly Musings of a Housewife) where she shares wearable style and beauty tips for the suburban housewife, healthy recipes and meal plans, reviews of family travel destinations, and anecdotes about life as a Christian woman, wife and mom of three.

Comments

I LOVE those sequin skirts! My husband’s work party is tonight, but we have to cancel since half the house is on some form of antibiotics for strep or ear infection. Bah humbug. Must say I’m a little relieved I don’t have to come up with a good outfit.

I’m kind of in love with the sparkly skirts. I almost bought a whole sequenced dress last winter. I was in love with it and when it finally hit a mega-markdown after the holidays, I was going to buy it and save it for this year, but when I tried it on, it was terribly uncomfortable. So sad. I think maybe a better made, well-lined piece would work better.

We used to have a formal Christmas party to go to every year. Open bar, food buffet, live band, and lots of gowns and suits. I miss those days. We work from home now so no parties and I have a feeling companies are putting them by the wayside these days.

Thinking of having a Christmas cocktail party in my home but I kind of want people to dress up!

Dressing for holiday parties always stresses me out too. I don’t want to invest much into an outfit because I won’t wear it again, yet I want it to feel special. I usually use accessories to dress up something that I already own. Anything with a little sparkle works great! I love those sequined skirts. It’s fun to dress them down too with casual pieces like a chambray, chunky sweater and tights. You could definitely get more use out of that.